Musically Miserable-Freewood
by rainistorm
Summary: Ryan is the unhappy new kid at a new place in his last year of high school, so he's in a pretty sour mood when he starts his first day at Austin's finest high school. His annoyance quickly turns to confusion and mild fear, however, when the students begin bursting into song and perfect choreography at random moments, music to match them seemingly coming from nowhere.
1. Chapter 1

"This town looks dumb." Ryan groused from the back seat of his parents' minivan, his blue eyes raking over the perfectly-trimmed lawns and nearly identical houses.

"Ryan, I know you're angry we're moving to a new place at the beginning of your last year in school, but that's no reason to act childish." His mother reprimanded, but her tone was soft; she understood that it was hard for him to be uprooted and lose all of his friends.

"It looks painfully dull. I'm merely making an educated opinion and hypothesizing that this will be as miserable as I infer." He smarted, smirking at the look of confusion that crossed over his mother's face.

"Ryan, stop using big words to make your mom feel dumb." His father interfered, but he could hear the muffled laugh in his tone. Ryan was incredibly intelligent for an eighteen-year-old and participated in several higher placement classes that made his simpler parents proud. Honestly though, he probably got his smarts from his uncle, looking between the two. He sighed; debates with his uncle would be yet ANOTHER thing he was going to miss.

"You're here!" His mom chirped and Ryan winced as he looked over the high school, much larger than the one in Georgia, and the students making their way inside. "Have a good day at school sweetie!" She leaned into the back seat and placed a purposefully obnoxious kiss to his cheek despite his attempts to squirm away.

"Mom! Please!" He grunted, shimmying over to the door. He smiled on his way out, turning back to mumble a quick 'I love you' before hoisting his backpack over his shoulder and strolling casually towards the glass doors that marked the entrance to Austin's finest high school.

"Hi!" He was bombarded upon entering by a lanky boy with wild golden-brown hair and an awkwardly large nose. The boy grinned to reveal perfectly white teeth, his hazel eyes shining excitedly. "I'm Gavin!" His British accent was thick and surprised Ryan.

"Um, hi. I'm-"

"Ryan! Ryan Haywood! I know all about you because I'm in charge of showing you around! C'mon!" He waved his hand energetically and Ryan cocked an eyebrow, fighting back a scowl as he followed.

"That over there is the office. You'll love Principal Hullam, he's so great! Then we have Vice Principal Burns, he's top! Through here is the cafeteria. Ooh, let's stop for breakfast!" He squealed, tugging Ryan's farmer-tanned arm into the open area before he could utter a word of objection.

The cafeteria was scattered with small tables, each sitting around six to eight kids, and it seemed like there were at least three hundred students in there, filling the eating area with talk that blurred into one loud, annoying noise. Ryan sighed aloud, dropping his backpack to the table Gavin had led him to. Four other boys sat there, each looking to be a senior as well. The first had sunken grey eyes and dark hair, looking incredibly tired. The boy beside him seemed cheery with a ginger beard surprisingly full for someone in high school. Then sat two others, one with curly auburn locks and another with thick glasses and black hair, laughing over something they'd done.

"What's wrong, Ryan?" Gavin leaned towards him and Ryan scooted away, pursing his lips.

"I'm just not too thrilled to be here." He retorted, crossing his arms.

"Aww, Ryan. Yknow, I'm sure you'll fit right in and find plenty of friends!" Ryan opened his mouth to snap back but stopped as he heard building music around him and looked around for the source; were students allowed to play music that loud during school here? He started as all of the students suddenly began to stand, turning towards him all at once, and the thought of a cult meeting ran through his mind.

Gavin caught his attention as he began to sing, gesturing towards the new student.

"I know it's hard, being new.  
High school is tough, but I'm here for you.  
I'll be your friend if you let me.  
You'll be okay, just wait and see!"

The music got louder and the others joined in, dancing around him in perfect choreography.

"What the fuck!" Ryan yelled, his blue eyes wide in panic. "Is this some sort of weird welcome thing?" Everyone ignored him, still singing around his chair.

"Its a struggle we face,  
Feeling so out of place,  
We're just trying to find who we are!"

Ryan wanted to laugh, or maybe scream, or wake up from whatever weird dream he was having, as Gavin walked towards him on beat, singing by himself once again.

"But stick with me, my new friend,  
And I bet you and I could go far." He smiled warmly and Ryan shifted away slowly, tensing his body.

"I don't know what the fuck is going on, but I'm really concerned." The music picked up again and he was being pulled out of his chair by several kids as he flailed to stop them. He was in the center as they all twirled and danced around him, singing in unison. "How long did you all rehearse this?!" He yelled over the music, looking for an escape route and failing to find one.

"Its a struggle we face,  
Feeling so out of place,  
We're just trying to find who we are!" The kids sang the chorus again and the music suddenly became quiet as Gavin once again solo'd, holding out a hand that Ryan refused to grab.

"But stick with me, dear Ryan, and I bet you and I could go far."

It was silent for several moments before the students returned to their seats, chatting and laughing again as if nothing had happened. Gavin plopped down, happily digging into his little box of cereal.

"I... What was that?" Ryan asked, for once at a complete loss for words.

"What was what, Ryan?"

"THE WHOLE SINGING AND DANCING THING!" He exclaimed, pounding a fist against the table.

"Woah big guy, just calm down." The lazy-looking boy interjected, voice cracking, and Ryan let out an exasperated sigh, looking around the table with pleading eyes for some sort of verification that he wasn't crazy. When none came he groaned, mumbling something about the town already making him bonkers.

"Ryan, let me introduce you to my friends! This is Geoff, he's like the leader." He pointed at the lazy one, moving on next to the bearded boy. "That's Jack. He's the mother hen."

"Hey!"

"C'mon, it's totally true." The curly-haired boy teased, scrunching up his freckled face.

"That's Michael. He gets angry easily. And, last but not least, there's Ray! He's kind of a douche, but a good guy. His haircut is rubbish though."

Ray leaned over the table in mock-seriousness, pretending to whisper to Ryan. "Friendly word of advice: never fall asleep during a haircut." He patted his head sadly and the others snickered.

"We run a video game club! Maybe you could join?" Gavin suggested, elbowing Ryan lightly, and the latter only nodded weakly; okay so maybe he'd just imagined the whole High School Musical moment. They seemed normal, and hallucinations happen when you're a stressed-out insomniac, right? He watched carefully for any sign of spontaneous singing, even humming, but none came for the rest of the breakfast period. He learned a few things about the boys though, like Ray's love for the word 'superfluous', or Jack's obsession with cats that was apparently shared with Michael's girlfriend, Lindsay, who was absent due to sickness.

Afterwards, Gavin showed him the rest of the school, leading him first through the gym, then the art wing, theater (Ryan was particularly interested in that), academic wing, and even the teacher's lounge, before showing him where his first block was. Subsequently, he shared his Physics class with Gavin and the Jack kid.

As Mr. Sorola entered, Ryan finally relaxed. He was good at school, he knew his work, this was definitely normal; no weird music or people, just numbers and science.

That is, until a girl came in late, crying over getting dumped by her boyfriend. A few people rushed over to comfort her, and that's when Ryan heard the music again, only a more somber tune. He braced himself against his chair, looking around wildly.

"Oh no, oh no no no no!" He screeched just as a blonde girl began to sing.

"Love is a fickle friend of mine,  
It's kept me up at night.  
But look around and I'm sure you'll find,  
Things have a way of turning out right!"

"Are you going to do something about this?" Ryan called to the teacher, but Mr. Sorola was keeping still with his eyes on the small group as if entranced, as were many of the other students. "HELLO?!"

"I've got to be fucking dreaming!" Ryan stood, prodding Gavin as the British boy sang along to a slow chorus. "GAVIN! What the fuck kind of school is this?" The other student didn't even look over at Ryan, as if he didn't realize he was there. For a brief, maddening moment, he thought of throwing a desk to draw attention but decided against it, falling limply into his seat and letting his sandy-blond head fall onto his table with a soft thud.

When the song ended (with the girl in higher spirits), everyone returned to their seats and Mr. Sorola began teaching normally.

"Gavin... What the fuck was that?" Ryan's tone was defeated as he turned to the Brit.

"Poor Barbara got dumped by her boyfriend, I think."

"Not that! The... God dammit, you are literally no help. Jack!" He hissed at the other boy and he turned to face Ryan with a friendly smile. "What just happened there?"

"Well, I think his name was Brandon and-"

"No! God how are you both so useless!" He yelled angrily, catching the attention of the teacher.

"Mr. Haywood! Maybe you'd like to tell us how this equation is solved?" He asked, pointing towards the board.

Ryan's face reddened in annoyance as he skimmed over the simple problem. "The variable is eliminated through process of factoring leaving the impossible sequence of the square root of negative one. Since an imaginary number is the only conclusion, there is no possible way to properly draw a feasible solution and the equation itself is determined unfit for the laws of both math and physics." He prattled out almost mechanically and smirked when Mr. Sorola blinked confusedly before hastily confirming Ryan's answer.

His smile was quickly replaced with a grimace, however, when he looked over to see Gavin beaming at him. "You're really smart, Ryan."

"Yeah, well, don't go fucking singing about it."

"I don't understand, Ryan. Is that some sort of joke from your old school?" Gavin cocked his head to the side, giving Ryan an (albeit cute) innocently confused look.

"Fucking-" Ryan took a deep breath, pinching the base of his nose with his thumb and forefinger. "I... I don't even know anymore." Surely this was some sort of prank, he decided, and his frustration would only fuel their ridiculous hoax more, so he calmly smiled back at Gavin instead before turning to begin working on their classwork.

He finished long before anyone else and glanced over to see Gavin chewing on his lower lip, staring at the paper with a look of hopeless desperation in his hazel eyes. Ryan held back a laugh, tapping the scrawny boy's shoulder once. Gavin jolted, turning to him with the same face. "D'you need help?" Ryan offered, tapping his pencil against his own completed work idly. Gavin nodded fervently, letting out a relieved breath as Ryan scooted closer.

"Okay, so I see you're stuck on number seven. We have to use Coulomb's Law for this one." He stated and Gavin turned to him panickedly.

"I never understood that one." He groaned and Ryan couldn't help but take pity on him.

"It's okay, it took me a long time to get it, too." He lied and Gavin heaved his shoulders. "Let's see, you've got the first equation right. Now, if Fe is in N, r is in m, and q's are in Coulombs, then what?" He asked, leading Gavin through the steps. Gavin blinked once before scrawling down another formula. "See, you've messed up here. You square the r variable and put it on the bottom of the fraction."

"Oh!" Gavin looked as if he had just realized something spectacular and Ryan couldn't help but chuckle at his genuine joy when he scribbled down the correct equation, flying through the steps with ease then. "Thanks, Ryan! I always get stuck on translating that one part." He knocked their shoulders together lightly and Ryan shifted his desk back to its usual place, staring aimlessly around the room and avoiding eye contact with Gavin until the bell rang.

If Ryan had thought the whole 'bursting into random song' thing would stop with Gavin (the supposed mastermind of the intricate prank) not around, he was sorely wrong. He endured two more songs without the Brit present, including one about how everyone is unique in their own special way. He stomped to his father's car after school, refusing to wait when Gavin called for him, and immediately confronted his parents upon returning home.

"How was your first day, sweetie?" His mom asked and Ryan could have screamed.

Instead, he calmly inquired to them. "Did either of you notice anything.. weird about your day?"

"Not at all! Everyone here seems so charming." She smiled happily and Ryan winced.

"No singing or anything?"

"That's a really weird question."

"What's really weird is that the students in my school were bursting into song randomly all day!" He threw his hands up at his father, highly exasperated.

"Aww what a lovely show of school spirit." His mother sighed happily. "I knew we'd made a good choice in schooling."

"What-no! Not school songs. Just... songs! Like, songs they'd made up and had choreography and everything! It was like I was living in a High School Musical movie. Look, I took a video!" He pulled out his phone to show the recording he'd taken in third block. The kids were all singing loudly, dancing in perfect sync.

"That's impressive." His father remarked, his mother humming her agreement.

"It's not... You're not supposed to do that in school!"

"Relax, dear. I think it's lovely." Ryan let out an annoyed roar before retreating to his room, staying there for the rest of the night and puzzling over what exactly was going on at his new school.


	2. Chapter 2

It's a fucking prank. It is definitely some weird, very in-depth prank. Ryan had decided this overnight and he strolled into the high school more confident than the day before, smirking knowingly at Gavin when he saw that the British boy had waited for him.

"Hi, Ryan! You're earlier than yesterday!" He beamed happily, trotting along at Ryan's side. "I thought I'd wait for you because... Well, um, because you might get lost on your way to the cafeteria!" Gavin faltered slightly, his face reddening.

Ryan glanced at Gavin, then to the entrance of the cafeteria that was right beside them, and cocked an eyebrow. Surely Gavin had only waited to assure the prank could continue, Ryan decided, mentally patting himself on the back for his deduction skills.

"Thanks, Gav." He smiled and Gavin positively radiated joy (from being able to continue the hoax, Ryan was sure).

They made their way to the same table from the previous day, but a new face took the place between Michael and Jack. A girl with red hair cut into straight bangs and round cheeks looked up at him, her mid-laughing face turning to one of shock.

"Ryan, this is Michael's girlfriend, Lindsay."

"Gavin, please. I'm more than Michael's girlfriend. Introduce me the way we discussed."

"But I only said that because he KNOWS Mi-"

"The way we discussed!" She snapped playfully and Gavin sighed, rolling his eyes.

"Ryan, this is Lindsay, cat extraordinaire and Enderman queen." Lindsay praised him and he snorted before taking a seat after Ryan. He pulled his chair closer to the new boy in the process, a detail that Ryan's preoccupied mind missed.

"Hey, mind if I have a word with the new kid? I gotta ask him a few things." She nudged Michael jokingly and he snickered.

"Well... I guess?" Gavin's brow furrowed confusedly, but Ryan was even more confused as he was pulled away rather harshly by the spunky girl. As soon as she was at a good distance and facing away from the table, her face sobered.

"So, I'm sure by now you've noticed something strange about this place."

"You mean your dumb little prank? I figured you guys out." Ryan grinned smugly, crossing his arms, and Lindsay smacked herself in the forehead gently.

"It's not a prank, kid. These students actually fucking sing."

"C'mon, I'm not an idiot."

"Listen, I know it's hard to understand. I've been here three years and I honestly don't get it at all, I've basically just accepted it. But this school is fucking weird. It's like they're living in a musical and they have no clue. Music comes from nowhere and they literally don't remember even doing any of it."

"That's absurd. Actually, it's impossible." Ryan's mind began to race with possibilities and he frowned; he really hated not understanding things.

"Yeah well it's fucking happening." She spat at him and Ryan felt like what she was saying was truth.

"O-okay. Um, well, tell me what you know about it, I guess."

"As far as I can tell, it doesn't happen before or after high school. I really think it just happens these four years for some reason. Also they don't seem to notice if I don't sing along, as I'm sure you've already witnessed when I was absent. Man, I picked a shitty time to get sick." She mused, tapping her chin absently. "Anyways, I usually just bullshit. Then again, I'm really into theater so it's pretty fun."

"I mean, I really like theater, too." Ryan muttered, scrunching up his nose.

"Then just have fun! C'mon." She led him back to the table, brushing off the others' confused looks. "Ladies, Ryan has agreed to join the school play!" She announced and Ryan fixed her with a dubious look.

"Wh-Ow! I mean, yeah, of course I have." He scowled at Lindsay as she stomped on his foot, batting her eyelashes at him innocently.

"That's wonderful!" Gavin stepped in, catching Ryan's attention. "I mean, I was thinking about doing it, too!"

"What? Gavin, you said the play was fucking stu-Ow! What the fuck!" He too looked to Lindsay, glaring at her almost as ferociously as Gavin was glaring at him. Of course, this too went unnoticed Ryan, the young man's mind racing with the new phenomena he was part of, plunged into by happenstance.

In fact, he was fairly amazed by it. He spent the next couple weeks studying each movement, occasionally laughing when he saw Lindsay joining in, a single person being completely random and wild in a sea of perfect organization. He also got to know his new friends better, enough to actually start calling them friends; so he was fairly pleased when he was invited to his first weekly meeting of the video game club, the Achievement Hunters.

"You're a fucking piece of shit!" Michael screeched at Ray as the shorter man destroyed him in Mario Cart. Ray laughed, never taking his eyes off the screen. It was a fierce competition between Lindsay, Ryan, Gavin, and Ray; well, between the first three, anyways, because there was no way any of them would be catching up to Ray. Jack, Geoff, and Lindsay watched from various other places in Geoff's basement, cheering them on. When the race finally ended, the three losers switched out.

Ryan sat on the couch, stretching unceremoniously. Gavin stumbled into the place beside him, their shoulders pressed together with his closeness. "O-oh, sorry Ryebread!" Ryan smiled at the nickname Gavin had taken to call him, shrugging gently.

"Nah, it's cool. I don't mind." He grinned at him, about to turn back to the game when he heard the music building. "What the fuck? It happens out of school?"

Lindsay paused the game just as the others turned to face Gavin, her face one of horror as she knew what was coming. "Fuck. Hey, um, Ryan! Mind going to the kitchen with me to get snacks?" She asked nervously, biting her lip.

"And miss this? Nah. I wanna see what they're gonna sing about. The music seems too slow for something happily video game-related." He had begun to pick up on the moods of song and found that he enjoyed several of his friends' voices; he was particularly fond of Gavin's smooth, accented singing ability.

Lindsay tried again, tugging on Ryan's arm. "I really think we should-"

Too late.

Gavin was staring right at Ryan, his hazel eyes wide and passionate, and Ryan was staring right back, admittedly much more confused and curious, as Gavin opened his mouth and began to sing softly.

"I've watched a lot of lovers  
Give it a shot in my time,  
And I always thought it wasn't for me,  
I didn't deserve the sublime.

My heart was cold and useless,  
Guarded by my brain,  
And I didn't have a problem,  
Because I didn't feel pain."

Ryan was now fully invested, still clueless, and paying no mind to the frantic Lindsay babbling loudly at his side. Gavin leaned forward, eyes impossibly wide and captivating.

"But then I met you, Ryan,  
And I didn't think it true,  
But I think you've gone ahead  
And made me fall in love with you."

Ryan tensed, mouth falling open slightly as the weight of the lyrics hit him head-on.

"Shit." Lindsay muttered, cupping her face in her hand and sighing loudly. "These singing assholes..."

"Um. I don't... I gotta go." Ryan practically ran out of the basement and up the stairs, leaving a still-singing Gavin looking sadly after him.

-

"Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit." Ryan was walking down the street, hands tangled in his hair and blue eyes focused on the ground as he mumbled to himself; he was much too far from his house to walk there, so instead took a seat on the nearest rock large enough to accommodate him.

"Okay, you're a rational man, Ryan." He spoke aloud, taking in a deep breath through his nose. "Rational enough to access your feelings. Let's do this in list form." He decided, nodding to himself. He liked lists; lists were smart and organized. "Firstly, do I like men?" He thought about it for a moment, the distinct images of several shirtless men flashing through his mind. "Okay, I definitely am not opposed to liking men."

"Secondly, do I like Gavin?" He took longer with this one, mulling it over. Gavin was charming for sure, definitely attractive, and happy. He was also annoying, cocky, and overly-enthusiastic. "Yes, but that adds to the charm. Everyone has faults, and his are pretty cute." So he did like Gavin then. He smiled, glad that was settled.

"Lastly, how do I go about this?" He was assuming Gavin had no idea he knew, considering they never really remembered singing. So he had the advantage of surprise, right? But how was he going to initiate this?

Well, he thought, when in Rome...

-

Gavin was waiting for him, just as he did every day (God, how had Ryan never noticed it before?) and Ryan took a moment to just look at him. A bit of stubble was beginning to grace his tanned skin and his hair was perfectly disheveled, as if he'd spent time to purposefully make it look that way. His pink lips curled slightly when he smiled and Ryan thought yeah, he could definitely fall in love with that.

"Hi, Ryan!" He greeted happily, footsteps matching up to the sandy blond-haired man as they made their way to the table. Lindsay eyed him carefully as they approached and Ryan winked. He'd wanted to ask her if it were possible for an outsider like him to do what he was about to, but he thought it'd be better if he didn't know.

So instead he sat there for a good ten minutes, saying nothing, willing for something to happen. When nothing did, he threw a major 'Fuck it' to the wind and stood up, scrunching his face up as if to brace himself for a punch; he was in theater, he could do this.

"Where are you going, Ryebread?" Gavin was the first to ask, of course, and Ryan clenched his broad hands into fists.

"Nowhere, Gavin. Actually, I have something to say to you."

"Well sit down, you mong. You look like a bloody lunatic." Improbable, Ryan thought, considering nobody besides their table was paying him any mind.

"Gavin..." He took a deep breath, disheartened when no music started, but he had already decided on this, and Ryan Haywood does NOT back down, so he began to sing.

"When I moved here I was bitter,  
Could you blame me, I ask?  
After all, moving so late  
Can prove to be an arduous task."

Still no music. He faltered slightly, glancing desperately to Lindsay; she grinned at him, nodding her head for him to continue and elbowing Michael harshly when he snorted.

"Um, I-I am a systematic fool  
My mind works on a different wave,  
And I'd decided a while ago  
No one would take any love I gave.

So I chose to not try it,  
And never gave a chance for my heart  
To care for another being  
But I think, with you, I'd like to start."

He finally looked up at Gavin, smiling warmly when he saw the huge grin on his face. Gavin stood and Ryan took his hand; he mentally cursed when the music finally started, accusing the school of being biased to new kids silently.

He continued singing, pleased the tune matched what he had been doing previously.

"I didn't think it'd happen;  
At least not in this way,  
But I'm pretty glad it did,  
And glad I got to know the day."

Gavin began to sing then and Ryan took the opportunity to squeeze his hand, testing the waters; holding Gavin's hand felt warm and homey, and he found himself wondering for the first time what it'd be like to kiss someone you care for. He listened to Gavin craft perfect lyrics from Ryan's admittedly sub-par song and smiled when the music began to die, pulling Gavin close to him.

"Is it okay if I kiss you?" He asked, his free hand resting on the small of Gavin's back as their chests were pressed together.

"I never knew you were such a gentleman, Ryebread." Gavin muttered before plunging forward and connecting their lips; for the first time, Gavin wasn't doing an action perfectly. In fact, the kiss was messy and varied and all over the place and so incredibly _imperfect_ that Ryan wanted to capture it and never forget it. Gavin's arms wrapped around Ryan's neck, deepening the kiss and the new boy certainly didn't object, flicking his tongue out experimentally. They broke apart only when the realization that they were in a school cafeteria caught up to them, blushing furiously as the two students awkwardly retook their seats, hands still entwined.

"So... Call it a hunch, but I think Ryan has a crush on Gavin." Ray broke the silence and the table erupted into laughter.


End file.
